Andy Murray will need to beat Rafael Nadal to win this week's Rome Masters.

Nadal - who beat the British number one in the semi-finals of the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters - has looked imperious on clay this season, convincingly winning last week's Barcelona Open.

Murray is seeded to face the world number one in the semi-finals and has received a first round bye.

He will play either Nicolas Kiefer or Argentinean qualifier Juan Monaco in the second round.

The tournament could provide in-form Murray with the chance to move past world number three Novak Djokovic in the ATP Tour rankings.

Djokovic has to defend maximum points in Rome, while Murray will aim to improve on last year's second round exit at the hands of Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka.